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Today I have exchanged text messages, emails, and numerous Instagram messages with people that I have met through LST. I feel privileged to be part of this forum. Happy Holidays to all of you.

Yay! Happy Krampus everybody! Super glad to be part of this little internet tattoo family, you guys rule.

My first is from my buddy who is an apprentice. Second is from Craig Brown at Historic Tattoo in Portland. And I just got this from Beau Brady at State of Grace in San Jose. That's the only photo I have uploaded at the moment. Jill Bonny at State of Grace. I'm counting down the days!

Happy Christmas and a big HAIL SATAN ! To one and all !

Merry Festivus and Happy Kwanzaa!

I am really liking seeing other people's faces! Definitely a lot of beards. I'm here to contribute another lady face. And actually I'm real excited cause I just cut all my hair off again last Monday. Hello.

Very nice and I couldn't agree more. Best of the season to everyone here!

I love tattoos so much I got super drunk last night on account of it. Now I am back at work...AAARGGHHHHHHHHHHH

Heres a photo of me with my girlfriend and my two best mates.

Indeed! Thank you all for the hospitality, and may everyone have a happy holiday! Cheers!

totally, Merry Christmas guys!

Me and my lady before a concert this summer.

Hoping everyone's Christmas was killer, and wishing everyone a happy New Year!

Philip Yarnell!

Now I want people to start photoshoping subtle penises into the photos they put on line so that they get copied.

A baku, and I'm just gonna let her do her thing with the rest of the arm.

flash is to tattooing as standards are to music, shapes and formulas, composition to leap from. Plagarism will always exist. Its part of cultural growth.

Done

Happy Christmas, as you lot say: By Matt Staydohar, Anvil Brand Tattoo, Marysville, CA.

How's it going, everyone? I'm Josh, from just outside of San Jose. I'm not sure what makes a good introduction post, so this will have to do. I got my first tattoo almost 3 months ago after 7 years of talk. I've always liked tattoos, but I never could quite figure out what it was that I liked about them. One of my good friends started his apprenticeship at a local shop and I think that helped refined my taste. After I got settled in at my new job I decided to commit to it. I get my fourth tattoo this weekend, and start my sleeve in two weeks! It's awesome living in the Bay Area and being around so many great artists. I'm stoked to start my collection. I'm also into stand-up comedy and cool clothes. Cheers!

This is a great place to discuss tattoos. In addition to that it's been a great place to meet different people from all over the globe. So too everyone on LST and those of you that are my IG buddies, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!!!! Have a safe and healthy holiday season!!!!

lets pretend i still look like this...

That was where I got my last tattoo

@Dan that's a beautiful tattoo, however , when I broke my hand it wasn't as swollen as that. Lol the pain we go though to make ourselves beautiful :P

I really like this one,it was done by Seth Leibowitz on one of the regular artists that does work on me,Jennifer Leonardi

Got this yesterday.

Just got these two from Dusto at Tower Classic in St. Louis as a Christmas present to myself

Good for you for taking charge of your health. I have also gotten myself into better shape over the last few years and have found that this makes getting tattoos all the more fun. I have a tattoo I really like on my shoulder and I enjoy wearing clothing that shows it off (in the summer, it's below zero temperatures today). Three years ago I would never have worn sleeveless shirts. I feel like there is some kind of mutual incentive with all of this- I want to be fit so I can enjoy my tattoos and I like to get tattoos as an inspiration to remain fit. Get something you like and that you'd like others to see. You will know what it means to you and no one else will probably even care. I saw a wonderful quote recently that said something like "you will worry less about what other people think about you once you realize how infrequently they do so."

A buff Phoenix punching a bipedal donut in the face.

Took the wrap off and got it cleaned before bed. Now, am I imagining things or is there a line missing? On the bottom right as you look at the picture, a line to mark the side of the petal?

Very touchy subject I have actually been to court for. It use to really bother me when others would not only copy my work. But they would use my actual work for their advertising. Its even trickier with tattoo work as many assume it is all fair game. These are reasons/excuses I have heard. Isnt tattoo flash all about copying other Artists work? (My answer: Yes but I purchased that flash and have permission to use) Anything on the net is fair game! I suppose if you water mark the work then it is an implied copyright of sorts.However some judges will even laugh that out of court. There was a case with Andy Warhol copying a Campbell's soup label. A famous court hearing that apparently changed everything for artists after that. Like when a cover band plays your song. "Its considered a tribute or Artists rendition" Andy Warhol won that case even though his painting was an exact copy of the Soup can. It was considered a tribute/ Artist interpretation. Even under copyright laws it had enough differences to not infringe. Andys Painting was on canvas and not a can, his painting was done with oils and not ink, his was hand painted, his was larger. Thus enough differences that it did not infringe on any copyrights. A copied tattoo may look exact however a good attorney could find the 7 differences. may be 7 lines that are slightly different sized. maybe a different needle or ink brand was used, maybe it was a different size person, with different skin type. "NOT worth fighting as they will find differences". Something even more disgusting is that if the person copying your work posts to a time stamp website or uses in advertising before you. Its considered thier work. "Ive actually been sued for using my own work in my advertising" So be sure to get proof you are the first by posting your work on a site that keeps track of the date posted. There are free copyright sites just for this, also water marks are free as well. Or I believe photobucket, Youtube and other big sites automatically keep track of the dates you post a picture of your work. Sorry to babble so much but I thought maybe this could save an Artist from the hell Ive have to go through.. One last thought is that tattoo customers will many times bring a photo of a tattoo they want. In these cases I do understand how tempting it can be to copy. Especially if your rent is due and the customer wont let you change it. What I tell customers is that I dont copy other Artists work out of respect. But I can design something similar with my Artistic style. (Still copying the premis is unethical in many ways but one can not copyright premis " The concept" ) Thats why when someone created the first feather to bird tattoo a million others had their versions of it. Or the lace face dead women tattoos. Most dont give credit to the originator nor do we usually even know who the first was.) Its all a fine line and letting it eat us up is a waste of time. I try and take it as a compliment and move on

I definitely agree. You are nailing it, Carolyn. Richard Smith did this cool ass reaper on my thigh, and he can't be older than 25 or 26. As a 24 year old, I enjoy getting tattooed by people close to my age. When he put this on me he said he had been tattooing for two and a half years.

We are all one face tattoo away from a lucrative modeling career. I kind of like this thread, gives me something besides an avatar to associate people with.

thanks for this thread, there is some great stuff here. I have way too many moles on my back to be able to have a large piece there so my thighs are the largest swath of real estate I have for a large tattoo. I've been kicking around some ideas but nothing has really gelled into full on inspiration yet.

@Dan those colors... ooooo

As mentioned by lance. Ukiyo-e print of Akugenta Yoshihira Uesugi Kenshin vs. Takeda Shingen by Horimatsu You mentioned Tamatorihime with the water dragon This painting was done Nico, the guy that does all my work. And the piece by Rubendall is worth seeing again Gundari Myoo Baku as already mentioned, is quite and underused image. This cool piece was done by Johan Svahn

I can't remember where that post is, but what you said here is what I was going to say. I'd maybe only add that if you want a tattoo to mark having a healthy lifestyle think about tattoos that will accentuate your body. That's more of a size and placement matter than one of imagery and there are basically unlimited possibilities there.

Thomas Hooper does my favourite squidmitts. A couple of examples stolen from his instagram:

Hahaha big pimpin...

@hogg Oliver Macintosh is too good , this is one of the toughest tattoos ever

I love flowers on the hands and I also really like this ... Jondix Gerhard Wiesbeck

Zac Scheinbaum at Saved. I believe he's only 23 or 24.

Popped into The Pearl this morning to catch a session with Tim Pausinger before he left for the Xmas holidays. He basically finished my chest piece. In January we'll link the shoulders and arms to it. He is also going to do some spider webbing between the tattoo and the bottom of my pecs. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Needles and Sins Tattoo Blog | Demetra Molina Interview with Loretta Leu

Sure it does...if we are talking about stealing. Theft if theft. But nobody wants to talk about other kinds of theft because it might make them appear to be a hipocrite when talkin about how someone else is stealing something. But for the sake of arguement related to tattoos, remember the guy who did the lion on that ufc guy that was suing the game maker over using his "intellectual property". All kinds of internet opinions were in support of him, but all he did was copy a lion statue (one of which we had in my house growing up which is why I recognized it). And if you looked at his portfolio there were examples of other copyright images reproduced as tattoos by him. Another example is how people got worked up about a guy who copied a nikko day of the dead girl..which happened to be a reproduction of a sylvia ji painting. I think what @G.Uristti is saying is that everyone on the internet is making assumptions as to the reasons why someone is doing a reproduction of someone elses tattoo and there's hardly any way to tell if that opinion is accurate. I suppose when you do tattoos, you at least have a broader perspective as to how and why it happens. Eventhough it may shatter the illusion that tv and ones own personal experiences have created about tattooers being artists, sometimes people just do tattoos. I've resisted even speaking on the matter because I doubt anyones gonna get what I'm trying to say anyway. Its probably a good thing that there's not messageboards for everyones job so that loads of outside opinions about every aspect of ones job can be debated and policed.

No I think you are absolutely right! Its also hilarious when artists copy photos of tattoos that are distorted due to the curve of the body, but they copy it straight, distortion and all. It looks absolutely ridiculous.

Most people I just simply tell them they watch too much TV and I don't want to talk about my tattoos because they bring up a dark part of my life and I paid my debt to society. Either that or that I was really drunk and don't remember why I got them. In the shop talking to customers, I usually use a sports analogy. I explain that tattoos are what I follow, like most would follow a sports team. Can you imagine being able to book a couple hours with your favorite sports star and have a permanent souvenir. The experience holds more meaning than the tattoo,but the tattoo is a reminder of the experience. I usually let the tattooer pick the image, because I want a tattoo that represents their style, so I remember where I got it from. They either get it or just continue to mouth breath, until I start talking about their idea again, but either way it shuts them up. I think the most important thing is having people in real life an on the internet to vent about these things and understand we to some degree go through the same things having tattoos.